New Friends, Old Enemies
by KazeKage Kitsune
Summary: This story is basically the story of what-ifs. What if Ed got married, what if Al and Winry started dating, and i think the most noteable: What if the original homonculi were restored. The CC's in here were inspired by my friends. I hope you like


Edward Elric woke up with the sun shining on his face. He rolled over in the bed and looked at the beautiful girl sleeping next to him. He smiled and reached over with his left hand and gently pushed the hair from covering her face. She stirred, and he froze, not wanting to wake her. When she didnt open her eyes he slowly withdrew his hand and pushed back the covers on his side of the bed. Keeping one eye on her, he slowly got up and cat-walked out of the room; his auto-mail leg thankfully not making a sound. He went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Looking inside, he moaned softly. "Nothing but milk. . ." he muttered; wondering why he had allowed her to get that last night and flipping his unbraided hair from his face; remembering that they had just gotten back into town at five this morning and hadnt had the time to get anything from the shops but the necessities.

He decided to chance a look in the freezer. Jackpot! He pulled out some waffles and bacon. "Well, at least we can eat something this morning before going to the store." He went to the cupbord and pulled out a frying pan. "I hope i dont screw this up. . last time I cooked, Al had to run outside and get the hose to put out the fire. . . " He trailed off. Al. . . he thought. Ed sighed and lit the stove, putting the pan on to warm. He bent over and rummaged around in another cabinet looking for a toaster.

After taking half of the items out of the cupbord and making much noise; (he kept looking over his shoulder into the bedroom, making sure that she was still asleep) he managed to find what he was looking for. He put everything back into the cupbord and set the toaster on the counter. He flipped his hair out of his face again and muttered something threatining to it. As he was digging around in yet another cabinet for syrup, he chanced a look out the window. Who he saw standing at the end of the drive made him stop dead.

He stood there, frozen, staring out the window at his brother, just as Al was standing at the end of the drive and staring up at the house as if seeing a ghost. Ed snapped out of his funk and realized what had Al so spooked. Yesterday the place where the house was now standing had been the charred remains of their childhood home. It must have been shocking to walk by and suddenly see a house that had seemingly sprung up overnight. . .even though that is what had happened.

But as surprised as Al was, he couldnt have been as shocked as Ed, who, when he had last seen Alphonse, Al was still a walking, talking suit of armor. The person standing at the end of the drive was Al all right. . . .but in his own body. Ed went over to the light switch in the kitchen and flicked it on and off four times; hoping his brother would be able to see it in the bright light of the morning.

Al saw the flickering light and tears filled his eyes. He ran up the drive as Ed went and opened the door. Al ran straight into the house and threw his arms around his brother. "Brother!! Ed is it really you?!" he cried, tears running down his face. Ed, completely forgetting the fact that he had been trying to keep it quiet, yelled "Al! Of course its me!! But look at you!? How the??" He stopped talking as he remembered what he had been doing in the kitchen. "Al, mind going into the kitchen with me to talk. . . i'm trying to make breakfast."

Al nodded "of couse. . .just dont burn down the house. . . by the way, where did the house come from anyway?. . . and that is just the first in a long line of questions, i have to warn you." Ed laughed. "I imagine so. . . and once you meet who helped me to make the house, you will have even more questions." Ed led Al back to the kitchen and checked on the bacon, flipping it over. "To answer your first question, Al. . its simple. . we used Alchemy to make the house at about five-thirty this morning. ." Al blinked. "we?" he asked. Ed shrugged, not wanting to answer that till the person in question was present.

Al decided to let it go for now. "Ok ill let you have your little secret, brother. . for now, but only because i desperately need to know the answer to this: Why did you leave. . .and where did you go?" Ed sighed and sensed the girl stirring in the bed upstairs. He knew he had about twenty minutes to explain before she came down. "Al . . . . . . . I left here under Mustang's orders. . .it was a secret mission that ended up in disaster. I ended up lost, in some strange country with no money and only Alchemy to help me. Truthfully, I never thought i would get home." Al nodded, seemingly satisfied for the moment.

Ed stopped talking, realizing that it hadnt been as hard to explain as he had thought. He heard the shower stop running and knew it would be about five minutes before she walked down the stairs and Al demanded even more informatin about the story, so he took advantage of the short lived silence as his brother digested what Ed had just told him. He turned off the stove and put the bacon on two plates, looking questionably at Al, who shook his head. Then he put two waffles down in the toaster and waited.

Soon he heard the bedroom door creak open and soft footsteps began to decend down the stairs. The girl stopped halfway down the stairwell and adjusted her red, pheonix-patterned kimono. Her long blonde hair shimmered in the sunlight and her blue eyes caught Ed's gold ones, making him shiver involuntarily. She continued down the stairs and walked over to Ed, taking his arm. Then she looked at Al, who was speechless once again. "Arent you going to introduce me to our guest, Ed?" she asked in a soft voice; breaking the spell of silence. Ed swallowed and cleared his throat. "Right, sorry. . . Al . . . I want you to meet Kitsune. . . . . . my wife."

Al was slilent for a long time. He just stood there, staring at his brother. Ed noticed the color draining from Al's face and quickly ran and got a chair. He placed it behind his brother just in time. Al sat, and looked at Ed. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then closed it again; obviously at a loss for words. Ed finally broke the silence; "Al, are you alright? Say something! You're making me nervous!" Al looked at Ed; who immediately wished he hadn't done so. The look on Al's face was an upsetting combination of hurt and anger that made Ed flinch.

Al finally spoke. "Brother." he said quietly, "You left without saying a word to me or to anyone else. You remain missing for two years and then; when you come back, you dont notify anyone, you rebuild our childhood home that we swore we would never go back to, and when i do finally see you, you tell me that you made the most important decision of your life without telling me?" Ed flinched; he knew who Al had ment when he had said "anyone else." Winry.

Ed looked down, properly chastised. "Al," he said. "You are absolutely right. I was reckless and I didn't consider your feelings with my actions. I had no choice but to leave like that, but i did have a choice of whether to introduce you to Kit before i decided anything serious." Ed chanced a look at Kit, who walked over to Al and looked him in the eye. "Alphonse, your brother didn't mean to hurt you; but you know how reckless and caught up Ed can get when he is involved in something important. Like when you two were searching for the Philosiphers' Stone?"

Al looked at her for a moment, as if studying her; then nodded in agreement. "yeah. . he does get carried away. But that doesnt excuse the fact that he did it. He should have learned by now that important things like this shouldnt be decided on his own." Kit looked at Ed, who nodded. "Al, please forgive me for this. . .and give Kit a chance. . .please?" he said. Al nodded again. "Okay brother. It seems that you really do love her, so i will give her a chance. So far she seems nice;" he leaned over and whispered into Ed's ear: "and she is very pretty."

Ed laughed; then grew thoughtful. "you know, Al. you were right with everything that you said. I think that the three of us should go and visit Winry and then take a trip to Central. I have a few choice words to say to Roy Mustang about that crack mission he sent me on." Al looked at the clock. "yeah, If we hurry, we can get breakfast. . ." Ed looked at Kit; who went back upstairs and grabbed the couple of screws that had fallen off Ed's auto-mail arm during the mission.

They left the house and locked it, then walked slowly down the drive. Kit looked at Ed; who was fidgiting with his jacket; revealing his nervousness. She reached over and took his hand. He squeazed it gently and smiled at her. They made their way up the road a little ways and paused at the end of Winry's drive. Ed swallowed hard and walked forward up the drive.

Al ran up to the door of the house ahead of them and pounded on the door. "Winry! Winry! You'll never guess who i found this morning!!" he shouted. The door opened and Winry looked at Al. "if its another stray animal, i dont want t-" she stopped dead when she looked past Al and saw Ed. "Edward?" she whispered in disbelief. "EDWARD!" she ran past Al and grabbed Ed, hugging him; as Kit looked on, snickering when Ed started to struggle. "um, Winry. . . I-I cant breath." Ed managed to choke out.

Winry released Ed and blushed slightly. "Sorry, I'm just so happy to see you! I never thought i would see you again! Al was so miserable and depressed without you." she suddenly got an angry look on her face and punched Ed in the nose. He fell back as she began to yell. "You inconsiderate little pipsqueak!! You left your brother and everyone else wondering where you were!! Half of them think you are dead! You left no note, no explanation, no NOTHING!!"

"And, then you show up out of the blue and . . . . and. . . . " she trailed off as tears began rolling down her face. "Ed, why did you go?" she whispered. Ed; having recovered from the punch, put his hand on Winry's shoulder. "Winry, I'm sorry. I really am. . but if you want to kill someone for my disappearance, then take it out on Mustang. He is the one that sent me away with specific orders to notify no one." Winry's eyes flashed. "MUSTANG? I should have known he was behind it!"

"HEY! YOUR FOOD IS GETTING COLD!" Al hollered from the house, having gone inside during this whole fiasco; not wanting to be caught in the crossfire. "COMING, AL!" Winry responded; turning back to Ed. "you hungry?" Ed nodded and followed her as she walked into the house. Ed turned and beckoned to Kit. "come on. now that she is over seeing me again, she will notice you." Kit nodded and followed Ed into the house.

Ed walked into the kitchen with Kit and pulled out a chair for her before sitting down himself. Winry looked at Kit, as if seeing her for the first time. "um, Ed. . . whos this?" Winry asked curiously. Ed looked at Al, who blurted out "That is Brother's wife!" around a mouthful of eggs. Ed groaned and smacked himself in the forhead with his palm. "way to be subtle, Al." he muttered.

Winry paused in mid bite. "What did you just say, Al? Dont talk with your mouth full, you know i can't understand a word you say when you do." Ed looked from Winry to Al, suddenly confused. "before i repeat what Al just said, may i ask what is going on between you two?" he said. Winry and Al froze. Al looked at Ed and blushed. "nothing Brother. . ." Ed raised an eyebrow, not fooled. "oh, dont worry about it, Al. . hes your brother. Al and I have been seeing each other for about a month now" spoke up Winry.

Ed laughed. "I never would have thought you two would end up together." he said, taking a bite of bacon. "im happy for you. and to repeat what Al tried to say a moment ago, this is Kit, or Kitsune, my wife." Winry choked on a piece of sasuage and Al pounded her on the back. "your what now?" she said when she had recovered. Kit smiled at Winry. "you heard me;" Ed said, smiling. Winry looked at Kit for a moment, studiying her. "she seems decent, but there must be something wrong with her if she married you, Ed."

Kit laughed as Ed scowled at Winry, who threw a buiscut at him; it beaned him in the head. "I believe congratulations are in order then, Edward." she said, ducking as he returned fire with a sasuage. The piece of meat flew over her head and landed in Al's orange juice. Al looked at Ed. "gee, thanks Brother." he said drily, fishing the sasuage chunk from his drink.

"Thanks, Winry. your approval means a lot to me, and i must admit; you took it a great deal better than Al. He almost fainted." Said Ed through tears of laughter as another buiscut beaned him on the forehead; This time thrown by Al. Ed grabbed a chunk of egg and flung it from his fork, hitting Al square in the face. A messy food fight ensued; Kit joining in and chucking a buiscut at Winry; which ended up going down her shirt. The fight continued for about an hour; until they were out of things to throw, and practially passed out from laughter.

Ed turned off the water in the shower outside Winry's house and looked up at the blue sky. Kit was inside getting dressed; she had already taken her shower to clean up from the messy food fight that Winry had started. Ed chuckled and grabbed a towel, drying himself off and; tucking the towel around himself, he walked back into the house to get his clothes. Al walked by him in the other direction, toward the shower, completely covered in food. "took you long enough." he muttered as he passed Ed. Ed laughed and went into a bedroom to get dressed.

Ed walked out of the room, towel drying his hair and ran into Winry. "Ed" she said. "you need to go to Central, right?" Ed looked at her. "yeah. . . i have to give Mustang a piece of my mind. im sick of him sending me on wild goose chases!" Ed realized he had begun to yell and relaxed, lowering his voice slightly. "I am planning on bringing Kit with me. . . you and Al are welcome to join us if you wish." Ed walked past Winry and into the living room, flopping down onto the couch.

Winry followed him. "Ed, Kit said something about you having lost a few screws." Ed looked at her indignantly. "what is THAT supposed to mean?" he demanded. Winry looked at Kit, who was relaxing in an easy chair near them, and then at Al, who had just walked in the door wearing a towel. They all started to laugh. Ed glared at them. When she had recovered, Winry corrected Ed's interpretation. "Ed, she ment that your auto-mail needs to be looked at and some screws need to be replaced." a look of comprehension appeared on Ed's face. he turned red "oh, hehe. . .sorry."

Winry shook her head. "just stay here. i need to go get my tools." Ed nodded and leaned back, looking at Kit, who was still giggling madly. "Kit, it wasnt that funny." he said. she shook her head. "thats not what im laughing at." she managed to choke out. "well, then what ar-" Ed trailed off and started laughing as well when he saw what she was looking at. Winry's dog had gotten a good grip on Al's towel and was trying madly to yank it away from him. Al was holding onto the towel for dear life and turning red as a beet. "LET GO!" he yelled, along with a few choice words that Ed had never heard Al say before.

The dog was not impressed, neither by Al's language or the strength in which he was using to try and yank the towel back; and with a well-timed jerk of his head, he managed to yank the towel from Al's hands and trotted off with his prize, tail held high. Al yelled and took off at a dead run into his room, turning a brilliant crimson. Ed was laughing so hard he began to cough, and Kit had fallen from her chair.

Winry came back into the room soon after Al had slammed the door. "ok" she said taking one look at Ed, tears streaming down his face; caught in helpless laughter; and Kit, rolling on the floor crying with laughter and gasping for breath; "what did i miss." Ed tried to recover so that he could tell her and so that Winry could work on him better, but it took him about five minutes. when he could finally talk he said; "Al and the dog just had a tug of war with Al's towel and the dog won." he dissolved into giggles again.

Winry laughed for a moment, then grabbed Ed and pulled him upright. "ok enough of that. . let me look at your arm." Ed obeyed and Winry examined his auto-mail with an eagle eye. while Winry was messing with Ed's auto-mail, Kit got up and went over to Al's closed door. she heard noise coming from the room and knocked lightly. behind her she heard Ed yell. "WARN ME WHEN YOU ARE GOING TO DO THAT!" he screetched.

Al yelled from behind the door. "go away!" Kit sighed. "Al. . im not going away. . im sorry that happened to you. . and we shouldnt have laughed. . . can i come in?" she asked over Ed's next loud cry. she heard Al sigh and get up. the door opened and he beconed her in. "his eyes were bloodshot, as if hed been crying "are you ok, Al?" she said. he nodded. "im fine. . i just dont want brother to leave again. . .he said hes taking you and going to Central to yell at Mustang. . ."

Kit smiled as she heard Ed yell again, followed by a loud crashing noise and an even louder clang. over the noise she heard Ed screech "OW!! WHAT DID YOU HIT ME FOR!?" "BECAUSE YOU KICKED ME!" came the response. then all went quiet for about two minutes before Ed yelled again at her, this time making a point "YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO TURN OFF THE DAMN MOTOR BEFORE YOU MESS WITH IT! THATS WHY YOUR HURTING ME SO MUCH!"

This was followed by a pause, then a loud click, and then you heard the tinkering of tools. Ed was now silent. Kit looked at Al, who was grinning despite himself. "Winry did that on purpous i bet." he said. Kit giggled and then remembered what she was going to say before the ruckus. "Al, Ed is going to take you with us. . . and Winry too if she wants to go. so dont worry about him leaving you." Al looked slightly relieved. he walked over to the door and opened it, peeking out. "we better go out there, it looks like Winry is almost done with his arm. . . she wanted to look at his leg, but i dont think she has to make any adjustments to it." he walked out, Kit following him.

"okay Ed, im going to turn it back on." Winry said. Ed glared at her. "you leave it on till you only have about two minutes left to mess with it, then you turn it off?? you must really like hearing me scream." Winry laughed. "oh stop being such a baby." "you did that on purpous, didn you." Ed accused. Winry said nothing and activated the auto-mail. Ed muffled a scream while still glaring at Winry.

Winry ignored it and stepped back. "Ed lets see you use that arm." she said. "ill use it all right. . " he muttered. he got up and moved his arm around experimentally. it was fine. after looking at his watch he yawned. "its getting late and i want to leave for Central early. im going to bed. Winry, Al. . if you guys are coming, i suggest you pack tonite before you go to bed. Kit, come to bed whenever you want. . ." and with that he disappeared upstairs. Kit soon followed, still giggling; Winry looked at Al. "i dont know about you, but im not letting that little nucience out of my sight for a while. Im going to Central." Al nodded. "im going too. . . Its been a while since i have seen everyone there. it will be fun." Al and Winry went into their rooms and began to pack.

The next morning found the four of them at the train station; Ed was sulking because Kit and Winry had ganged up on him and made him drink two glasses of milk during breakfast despite his very loud and very active protests. Winry and Kit were deep in discussion about something regarding Elysia Hughes and Al was watching Ed. Ed stormed past the girls and over to a bench in the corner of the train station where he sat down, fuming.

Al got up and walked over to Ed. "brother, are you going to be in a foul mood the rest of the day just because you had to drink some milk??" he said. Ed looked up and managed a half smile. "When you put it that way, it does seem kind of stupid. . " he admitted, chuckling a bit. Ed got up and began to walk back over to the girls when he heard the loud whistle of the train. "oh well, ill talk to them on the train then. ." he said and changed course to intercept the girls as they were walking to board the train.

Kit and Winry continued their discussion after giving the conductor their tickets and finding a seat. Ed sat next to Kit and cleared his throat. she didnt seem to notice and kept talking. Ed did it a bit louder; still with no reaction. he tapped her on the shoulder; he sighed. she seemed to be either ignoring him, or too involved in the conversation to notice him; so he decided to listen in to the conversation.

". . . . yeah, i recently got a letter from Mrs. Hughes saying that Elysia has finally stopped asking for Maes after four years of the neverending statement. ."ill show Daddy when he wakes up". . i dont know if thats a good thing or a bad thing. . " said Winry. "well, its a good thing that she no longer thinks that he will come back, that means shes accepting that at least, but it wont be good if she stops talking about him completely." Kit responded. Ed decided to interject; "Are we planning on stopping in to visit them?" he asked.

Winry looked at Ed, "you mean, you wouldnt mind?" Ed shook his head. "not at all. . . i think i would like to see them after all this time. . . i owe a lot to Maes. . . and i do miss him." Winry reached over Kit and hugged Ed. "Thank you, Edward!" she said. "i think it will mean a lot to Mrs. Hughes that you are coming." Ed sqirmed "i wont be going if you crush me to death!" he muttered. Winry let him go and got up to move to the seat in front of Ed and Kit; where Al was sitting and staring out the window.

Winry leaned over and tried to see what Al was staring at. try as she might she couldnt figure it out. "um. . Al?" she finally said. he didnt answer, so she tried a different tactic and poked him. "Al!!" ". . huh?" Al said, distracted. Winry looked at him, concerned. "Al, whats wrong?" "nothing. . .im just nervous about going to Central. . i havent been there in so long. .i wonder if anyone will recognise me. . " Ed leaned over the seat and smacked Al lightly on the top of the head with his left hand "you idiot. . you look just like me, only with shorter hair."

". . . .And taller, so if anyone gets confused they just need to compare your heights!" Kit said and started to laugh, dodging the feigned attack that Ed lazily threw her direction. "stop calling me short or ill turn your hair green." he threatened. she just laughed, unfazed. Al chuckled "yeah i guess you guys are right. . i shouldnt worry." Winry got an evil grin on her face. "no, Ed should be the worried one, since you got taller, everyone will probably think that Ed has shrunk!"

Ed shrieked in outrage and chucked a glove at her. "SHUT UP! I GREW TOO YOU KNOW!" Winry just laughed. "yeah. . about an inch." she caught his other glove as he threw it at her. Al looked at Ed, who was turning slightly red. "um. . Winry, Kit. ." he said through his own laughter. "i think you should stop ripping on brother. . he looks like hes about to explode."

Winry looked at Ed and then nodded "ok, sorry Edward, but sometimes you just make it too easy. . " she handed his gloves back to him. He put them on and stared out the window, fuming. Kit put a hand on his shoulder; he shrugged it off and she did it again. "Edward. . come on. . we were only teasing. . lighten up." Ed looked at her and sighed. "i can never stay mad at you. . . alright. . . fine." He was going to say more when the announcement came that they were now pulling in to Central's station.

The four of them got up and as they filed out of the train, Kit caught a glimpse of someone dressed in black with wild hair. is that. . .no, it couldnt be she thought and dissmissed it as a figment of her imagination. The figure was soon gone from her mind, although not from the scene; as he/she began to follow them.

Once they left the station the four of them gathered together and discussed their plan of action. "I say we go to the Command building immediately so i can yell at Mustang." said Edward. "Then we can go and visit the Hughes' and do some shopping or something." No one had any arguments so they walked down the road and entered the High Command building. Edward turned heads wherever they walked and many of the officers started to whisper.

Ed opened the door to the room where he knew he would find Riza Hawkeye and the others and peered in. Riza looked over from the argument she was having with Havoc and Fuery and gasped in surprise. "Edward? Edward Elric? Is that you?" she said. Ed nodded. "none the worse for wear." Riza walked over to him. "everyone here at Central wrote you off a while ago when you didnt come back at the designated time. Even the Colonel thinks you are dead. . ROY!" she said and ran to her phone.

Al spoke up. "So Roy has been returned to his rank as Colonel?" Riza nodded and dialed the phone. "Sir, you will never believe who just walked in. . ." she said into the phone. ". . no i wont tell you. . ill send them in to you, Sir. . . . just trust me! you want to see them. . .ok. . understood Sir." she hung up and motioned to Ed "he will only allow one person to go." she said. Ed shook his head. "no. If i go, then so does she." he motioned to Kit, who had remained slightly out of sight till then.

She stepped forward and Riza looked at her. "Ed, who is this and why wont you go without her?" Ed smiled. "I suppose if there was anything good to come out of that wild goose chase that Mustang sent me on, it was this. . . this is Kitsune." He said, taking her hand. He didnt need to finish his sentance. Riza got a look of shocked happiness on her face and nodded. "dont worry, she can go with you. . im sure the Colonel wont kill you. now go."

Ed and Kit left Winry and Al talking to Riza and the others and walked down the hall to Roy's office. Ed knocked on the door. "Come in," came the lazy response. Ed opened the door and walked into the room, Kit at his heels. Roy was behind a small stack of papers and reading none of them; he actually had his nose buried in a book. "ahem." Ed cleared his throat and Roy slowly looked up.

Roy caught sight of Ed and fell off his chair in shock. "Edward Elric?!" he managed to shout before hitting the ground. He picked himself up and forgot all about the book that had fallen onto the floor. Dusting himself off, he sat down again, staring at Ed and blinking. He rubbed his eyes as if not quite believeing them. Ed chuckled "Mustang, its me. I'm not a ghost, and you arent dreaming." Kit giggled from behind Ed. Roy managed to shake himself out of his stupor and looked at Ed. "I wrote you off as dead about a year and a half ago, Fullmetal." he said, smiling.

Ed growled "well i'm not, no thanks to you! what was the big idea sending me on that mission!? I wound up in a strange country, with no money and only alchemy to help me! If it hadn't been for her-" motions to Kit, who comes to his side. "I wouldnt be here right now! You self-serving egotistica-" "EDWARD!" said Kit, cutting him off. "you should at least let the Colonel explain himself before going off on a tirade."

Roy looked at Kit curiously. "She's right, Ed. I do deserve a chance to explain. but first, who is this girl and why is she defending me?" Ed smiles and looks at Kit. "if anything good came out of that mission it was this. Roy, i want you to meet Kitsune Elric. . . . my wife."

Roy looked as though he was going to either laugh or pass out in shock "Edward. . . ." he shakes his head. "you never cease to surprise me. Kit, good luck with this one. anyway. . about that mission." he motions to Ed and Kit to take a seat; then picks up the phone and hits the intercom.

"Apollo? yeah. . . Fullmetal has finally returned. . . .yeah it was a surprise to me too. . . uh huh. . . well, i need you to come in here and outline that mission that i originally sent him on so that he will stop yelling at- . . . . yes, i know. . . . ok. bye." Roy turned to Ed. "my alchemist lieutenant is on her way. she will be better able to explain things than me."

A few moments later, a knock sounds at the door and in walks a beautiful woman with light blue hair and blue eyes. Ed stands up to salute to her but forgets to finish the greeting when he realizes that she is shorter than him. He sits down, smiling. She salutes to Ed, Kit and Roy and then turns to Ed. "Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist." she says, smiling. "I was wondering if i would ever get to meet you, my name is Apollo Thompson, the Blue Flame Alchemist. I am Roy's second in command in the alchemists rank, just like Riza is on the soldier rank."

Ed nods, unable to stop smiling, but able to supress a snicker. Apollo continues; "The mission that the Colonel sent you on was one that only you could, and were able to accomplish. you did complete the mission, yes Fullmetal?" she asked. Ed nodded again. "ok. . .well, we did not forsee you to get stranded there. there was an earthquake here at Central and and another unforseen event that prevented us from coming to get you."

Ed looked at her. "an earthquake? i didnt see any signs of it when i got here." Apollo sighed. "The earthquake occured two days before we were originally supposed to get you. . . when we finally got there, you had apparantly decided we werent coming and had disappeared off the map. that was the "unforseen event" i mentioned." Ed blushed and fidgeted slightly. "Sorry, but im not one to sit around for two weeks waiting to be picked up. so i found my own way back when i discovered the trains were out of commission."

Kit snickered. "found your own way back? Edward. . .I found you in an alley in my town, passed out from hunger and exhaustion after walking for four days straight after you left the train station." He gave her a look. she just laughed. Apollo smiled at Roy "well they make a cute couple." Roy just shrugged. "Apollo, i need you to announce to every military building in Central that Fullmetal is back. . . and that I am going to throw a party. . . also mention that Ed has an announcement to make during it. Thank you for coming and explaining things. You are dissmissed."

Apollo saluted and walked out. soon you heard her voice booming over the loudspeaker all over Central. Roy looked at Ed. "ok now that that has been explained, tell me about you two." Ed looked at Roy, still kind of peeved, but decided to let that go and tell him about Kit.

"Well, as she mentioned, she found me in an alley, unconcious. she took me to her house and fed me and let me use her shower and bed. . . when i was feeling better, we began to talk and i just ended up staying there for a while. we fell in love and I proposed to her about six months ago. we got married about three months ago. She is an alchemist and also psychic. . . i dont know if there is much more to say."

Roy looked at Kit, who smiled at him. "hmmn. . .well. . i must say, Ed. You sure know how to pick them." he smiled at her. Ed just laughed. Roy looked back to Ed. "now i am going to have a whole crapload of paperwork you realize. . . now that you are back." Ed grinned. "Then i better leave you to get started on it. Alphonse and Winry are back talking to Riza, Havoc and Fuery. we better get back to them. we were going to go and visit Mrs. Hughes and Elysia." Roy got a faraway look in his eyes. "you go ahead. im sure they will appreciate the visit."

Ed stood and saluted Roy, then walked out of the office and down the hall. He heard Winry and Al in deep discussion about something with Riza and decided to let them finish their conversation.

A black bird sat on the windowledge of Roy's office during the entire time that Ed was in there. it blinked its black eyes and launched off the windowledge the moment Ed left. It soared around the building once, then took off toward a wooded area. it landed in a clearing and transformed into the dark figure that Kit had noticed earlier: Envy. "So, the Fullmetal Pipsqueak found himself a woman." he mused to himself. "I wonder how Sloth will take this. . . . ." He transformed again into an eagle and flew away to where the new homonculus creator was helping Sloth to re-solidify. a new method had been discovered to recreate the original homonculi as they had been originally. Envy had been the first. The only one that they couldnt seem to find to remake was Wrath. But no matter. . . Wrath could be replaced.

A young boy around age 4 woke up near the Hughes' home, naked, hungry and terrified. he ran to their door and pounded on it. Mrs. Hughes opened the door and let him in, she fed him and gave him some clothes to wear, then he went into a spare bedroom and fell asleep.

Ed, Kit, Winry, Al and Riza pulled up at the Hughes' home and got out of the car. Ed ran up the drive, closely followed by Kit, Al and Winry. Riza took her time. Ed rang the doorbell and the door was opened by a girl about age 9. Winry smiled. "well, hello Elysia! how are you doing?" Elysia smiled back. "WINRY!!" she ran out and hugged Winry, then ran back inside. "MOM, MOM! WINRY'S HERE AND SHE BROUGHT PEOPLE!" she yelled. soon Mrs. Hughes came to the door. "Elysia, shh. . you will wake that poor boy." she said to Elysia. Then she went over to Winry.

"Winry dear, its been such a long time. . and is that Alphonse with you?" she said, looking at Al. Al nodded and stepped aside. "not just me, Ma'am" he said, grinning. Ed stepped forward. Mrs. Hughes took one look at Ed and burst into tears, hugging him. "Edward Elric?? is that you?" Ed smiled. "Yeah. .its me. . . i finally managed to get back here."

Mrs. Hughes invited them all in. "come on in, i wasnt really expecting company, but i bet i can get you all something to eat. . .Edward, who is that charming young woman at your side?" she said going into the kitchen. Ed smiled. "This is my wife, Kit." he said. Kit giggled, having a feeling that Ed was getting tired of saying that. Mrs. Hughes returned and set a plate of cookies down on the table. she poured everyone some milk, and handed Ed a glass of water.

A noise came from the top of the stairs. everyone looked up and saw a boy standing there in a shirt that was too big and pants that bunched severely at the ankles. his hair was slightly wild and his eyes were big. Ed took one look at him and tensed up. he knew this boy. everyone in the room minus Kit and the Hughes knew him. Wrath.

Al froze for a moment, then looked to Ed. "Brother?" he said softly. "Is that. . ?" Ed looked at Al and nodded. "Yeah Al. . .thats Wrath." he breathed, talking in a hushed tone as well. Kit heard Ed and looked at him. "But Edward, didnt you say that Wrath was a homonculus?" Kit said, just as softly. Ed nodded. "Yeah, I said that. . ." he trailed off as Wrath walked slowly down the stairs and over to Mrs. Hughes. Ed moved fast; clapping and making a blade, he stood and pointed the blade in Wrath's direction. "Don't move, Wrath. I don't know how you managed to survive, or even if you are Envy in disguise, but i suggest you get out of this house now. . . . or i'll kill you." he said coldly.

Wrath froze, his eyes huge as he stared at the point of the blade and began to cry as he felt the fear and hostility in the room all aimed towards him. Mrs. Hughes seemed frozen and confused, not sure what to do. Kit was the only one that moved. She walked in front of Ed and put her hand on the tip of the blade, pushing it down. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Ed yelled at her. "HE CO-" "Edward. . . . " she said, cutting him off. "You said that Wrath was a homonculus. . . . If so, this boy cannot be Wrath." Ed looked at her, unbelieveing. "what makes you say that? he looks exactly like Wrath!"

"because. . " Kit walked over to the boy and took off his shirt revealing nothing but pale flesh; ". . .this boy is human." Ed blinked as the boy put the shirt back on. "You mean that Wrath was turned human?" He transmuted his arm back to normal. Kit smiled. "apparantly so. . . Little One?" she said, turning to the boy. "Would you like a family and a name?" Ed knew immeideately what she was scheming. "ohh, no! no, no, no. Kit, we are not adopting him."

Kit looked at Ed and smiled disarmingly. Ed sighed "i hate it when you do that. i really do. . . alright fine. . . hey Kiddo, im sorry about threatening you. . ." he knelt down so that he was face to face with the former Wrath. "would you like a mother and father?" the boy nodded through his tears and threw himself at Ed, sobbing. The tension that had built up in the room seemed to evaporate and Riza looked at Mrs. Hughes and smiled.

Winry looked at Al and nudged him. "it looks like you just became an uncle, Alphonse. . . ." she grinned. Al groaned. Elysia walked over to the little boy and offered him a cookie. He let go of Ed and took it in one small fist, taking a bite. "Thanku. . " he said quietly.

Envy the eagle flew in a window in the upper level of Sarai's mansion and transformed into his new favorite form: Edward. He walked into the next room and spotted the newly revived Lust relaxing in a windowseat, and, hovering nearby her was the revived Gluttony. the revived Greed was nowhere to be found, and Pride hadnt been revived yet. Wrath was, well. . . in need of absolute replacement. Envy looked around and spied Sarai sitting next to the revived Sloth; who was laying in the canopy bed. Envy ambled over to the bed and sat on the edge of it. Sloth looked at Envy in disapproval. "Envy, I thought i told you not to take that form around me. . . it gives me fragmented memories that i dont want to deal with."

Envy snickered and shifted to his normal form. "speaking of the Fullmetal Pipsqueak, i just saw him about ten minutes ago. . . he's back. . . and it seems he found a woman that could stand him. He's married." Sloth looked at Envy with interest. "Edward got married?" "we may be able to use this to our advantage." said Sarai, thinking hard. "Envy, i need you to go and get close to Edward. . . i dont care what form you use. . an animal might get you in easier. . i hear that brother of his has a soft spot for cats. Listen for anything that might help us. dont do anything until you report back to me in four days. using the information that you have gathered in those four days, we will figure out a way to get rid of Fullmetal for good."

Envy nodded and transformed back into an eagle, flying out of a nearby window. this should be easy. he said to himself as he winged back to Central. Lust got up and walked out, followed by Gluttony. "Edward Elric is back? and with a significant other? i must see this for myself." She said. Sloth leaned back, still exhausted from her ordeal of re-solidification from near-thin air. She looked at Sarai. "Are you planning on killing Edward?" she asked. Sarai shook her head. "no, Sloth dear. . . I am planning on something a lot different, but i couldnt really tell Envy that now could I?"

Roy had just recieved a call that told him that the party decorations were in order and complete. the party would begin as soon as Ed and the others returned. Roy hoped it would be soon. He was anxious to stop all the calls he was getting from people claiming to have seen Edward's ghost. Roy walked down the hall and into the room where the party would take place. a few people had already arrived. Roy walked over to Havoc and Fuery who were standing by the punch bowl. "what are you two doing in here already? and you better not have spiked the punch." he grinned as the two fidgeted. "oh i dont really care. . . just dont let Ed have any. . . or Al." he continued to chat with them while waiting for Ed and the others to arrive.

Ed, Kit, Wrath, Riza, Al and Winry waved goodbye to Mrs. Hughes and drove off. when they reached Central Command; Al separated from the group for a few moments and came back with a bulge in his shirt that was squirming. Ed sighed. "Al, is that a cat?" Al nods. Ed just laughed "take it out of there, you will suffocate it." Al grinned and pulled out a small gray kitten from his shirt. "you mean i can keep him?" Ed nodded. "Just keep him away from any dogs and i really dont care. . " They walked into the building, Al holding onto the kitten. The kitten blinked and looked at Ed. jackpot! it said to itself.

Roy met them as then entered the building. He looked at Alphonse holding the cat and sighed. "I assume you want that cat with you, Soulbinder?" he said. Al flinched; he had hoped that Roy would leave that title out of things for a while. He nodded as Ed looked at him oddly through Wrath's wild hair. Roy just shrugged. "keep that cat away from Black Hayate and i really dont care. Now, Fullmetal, Soulbinder. . ." he stopped talking and seemed to be in deep thought. He looked at Kit. "what is your alchemic talent? your element? I seem to be in the understanding that you are a jack of all trades?"

Kit nodded and smiled. Roy looked deep in thought for a moment. "well, we cant very well introduce the wife of the legendary Fullmetal alchemist by just her first name. . . how about this; Kitsune Elric, the Elemental Alchemist." Kit looked at Roy in approval. Ed forgot about Al's new title and stared at Roy. "do you mean to tell me that you are going to make her a State Alchemist? only the SA's have nicknames like that." Roy shrugged. "well, i think she deserves something for getting you back to us, Ed. dont you?" Ed grinned.

Hawkeye nodded in approval. Roy motioned to Apollo who was standing in the shadows. Apollo walked over and handed Kit a watch, then turned to Ed. "Um, Edward? im going to need you to put the kid down. I have your replacement watch for you." Ed put Wrath down, or tried to, Wrath cried out and clung to him. he sighed and looked at Kit.

Kit smiled at Wrath. "come here. . i'll hold you. Edward needs to do something." Wrath allowed himself to be transferred into Kit's arms as Ed took the watch; thanking Apollo. Roy cleared his throat. "ok back to what i was saying. Fullmetal, Soulbinder, Elemental and Blue-Flame. . . the four of you are dismissed along with the kid and Winry. The party starts in about ten minutes. Ed, Kit, you two better be there on time because the first thing thats happening is the announcement." Ed grinned at Kit. "we have three announcements now." he said. "but i think that you will probably cover the one in your introduction of Kit." Roy nodded. "you guys can use my office to get ready. ill see you in a few moments." Roy walked off followed by Apollo and Riza.

Kit and Winry walked down the hall ahead of Al and Ed, sensing that they needed to talk. Kit was holding Wrath and began discussing what to rename the poor boy; who had fallen asleep on Kit's shoulder seconds before. "hmmn. . i have a few names in mind. . ." she listed them off as they walked. " Cody, Devin, Alex, Dallas, Evan, Jesse, Kyle. . ." Winry listened with interest. "hmmn. . maybe you should give him that list and let him choose. . . " she said. Kit nodded. "yeah i think he is old enough for that. . "

Ed looked at Al. "the SOULBINDER alchemist, huh? When were you going to tell me that you had become a state alchemist?" he said as they walked about ten feet behind Kit, Winry and Wrath. Al groaned. "I had hoped to leave that out of things for a while. . . i thought you would be upset. Roy made me a state alchemist when you disappeared. my orders were to find you, but i managed to do quite a few other things while i was looking, including gaining almost as big a reputation as you have, brother."

Ed just laughed. "did you think i would be angry at you? that is a pretty awsome title, the Soulbinder alchemist. . . i bet i know where that came from. that little trick you have of transmuting part of your soul into a piece of armor. . .right? i imagine you have learned how to use that in combat." Al laughed in relief that Ed was not angry. "yeah. . .thats the way i got that name all right, and i do know how to use it in combat very well. . . "

the cat in Al's arms purred in contentment, already having learned a few priceless gems of information that Sarai would find incredably valuable. . . Kit had just been named the Elemental alchemist, Alphonse had become a state alchemist and had just given away one of his tricks, and that kid that Kit was carrying could be none other than Wrath transformed into a human. he said to himself as they entered Roy's office.

After freshening up; the five of them plus the cat-formed Envy appeared in the hall where the party was about to start. Wrath had been given a bath and his hair had been tamed into a presentable fasion and he was wearing clothes that actually fit him. Kit had put on a red kimono that matched Ed's jacket, caducious and all. Al had put on an outfit simaler to Ed's, however his was blue; and Winry had put on a kimono to match Al's blue jacket.

Roy saw them and signaled Ed, Kit and Wrath to come up to the makeshift podium that he had comissioned Fuery to put together. Apollo grabbed the attention of the chatting military soldiers and state alchemists that had arrived by making a sound like a firecracker going off with her alchemy. Roy cleared his throat. "It is my pleasure to announce the return of Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, to Central. As you can see, he has two people with him. I will allow him to announce them himself."

Roy stepped down and motioned Ed up to the mic. Ed stepped up amid applause and Kit and Wrath followed. "Thank you, Colonel. . I must say that I am happy to be back, and we really appreciate the wonderful welcome we have recieved. I am pleased to announce three things. The first of which is;" he motioned Kit to step forward. "I would like you all to meet Kitsune Elric, the Elemental Alchemist, and my wife."

There was a pause, followed by applause and cheers from everyone in the room. once that had died down, Ed continued. "the second announcement i have is hiding behind Kit, and i wont force him to walk forward. Most of you would probably recognise this little boy as the homonculus named Wrath. Well, dont worry about that any longer. Wrath has become a human, and deserves to be treated as such. he is not to be feared. Kit and i have adopted him." murmers swept the room, then all was silent.

Ed grinned. "and finally, and i think this is the best news of all; I just learned recently that I am about to become a father. Kitsune is pregnant." this time the roar was damn near deafaning. Roy came over and announced that the speeches were over. Ed, Kit and Wrath stepped down and were immediatlely surrounded by people congradulating them and prasing them.

Al looked at Winry. "did you have any idea about that?" he asked her in shock. Winry shook her head. "not a clue. . but that is fantastic! i am so happy for them!" She wandered over to the food table and grabbed a plate as the music started to blare.

The cat purred even louder. so, the Pipsqueak's wife is gonna have a child. . . this information is priceless. . .Sarai will definetly appreciate this information. he said to himself. the cat freed itself from Alphonses' grip and wandered over to the food table, snatching up a piece of sushi.

in a dark corner of the room stood Lust. she had left Gluttony outside since he couldnt be trusted near food. she smiled to herself "Fullmetal managed to snag himself a prize with her. . . I think later i will have to pay the three of them a visit. . . and about that little Wrath human. . . i must talk to him." she said to herself and walked out.

Sloth had recovered enough to stand and was looking out the window. Sarai walked up behind her. "Sloth, dear. Envy wont be coming back for a couple of weeks. have patience." Greed spoke up, having shown up earlier that day. "hey Sarai. . . what part do i get to play in this little scheme to get rid of Fullmetal?" Sarai just smiled. "i havent decided yet. . we have to wait till Envy reports back to know exactly what they are up to."

It was around three in the morning when Ed, and Kit finally managed to escape the party. Al, Winry and Wrath had left at about ten when Wrath decided to get fussy. Winry had volunteered herself and Al to take him to the room where they were all staying at a hotel across the street. Winry knew that Ed and Kit had to stay there since the party was being thrown for them, and because everyone wanted to hear all about Ed's adventures over the last couple years. Winry had put Wrath to sleep and then had gone to bed; Al however, sat at the window playing with the gray kitten, deep in thought.

As Ed and Kit left the party, they were met by a pretty young Alchemist who had recieved an order from Roy that they were to be escorted to the hotel safely. Roy had started to get an odd feeling in the pit of his stomach and wanted to take no chances. The young woman smiled at Ed and Kit as she introduced herself; "my name is Mai Shinohara. I am known as the DarkShadow Alchemist and I am pleased to be your night watchwoman. during the day you wont need me, but the Colonel feels that you should be watched at night so no one trys anything."

Kit smiled and thanked her. Ed looked her over, muttering something about Mustang treating him like he was still 12, then nodded. "i suppose we could use the extra backup. . . better to be safe than sorry." he smiled at her and they went across the street to the hotel. Ed and Kit went in and Mai took a position outside the door. Ed and Kit quietly cleaned up and started to go into their bedroom when Al spoke up from his chair near the window, scaring them half to death.

"Brother?" Al said quietly. "I have been thinking." He petted the kitten; who started purring again. Ed looked at Kit, who nodded and went into their bedroom to give Ed and Al some privacy. Ed walked over to Al. "about what, Al?" he asked, sitting down across from him. Al blushed a brilliant crimson. "About Winry. . . and about you and Kit. . .you two seem so happy. . . I want what you have. . ." Ed looked puzzled. "is there a problem between you two?" Al shook his head, turning redder. "no. . . I am so much happier with her. . . I have never felt so cheerful in my entire life. . . and i have more energy. . . but I am wondering if I want to take it to the next level."

Ed gave Al a look. "what do you mean by that?" he said, his tone saying that his mind had gone instantly into the gutter. Al groaned. "No! not that! Ed, i am thinking about asking Winry to marry me!" Ed smiled, "well, Al. . .if you feel that you are ready for that, i say you should go for it." Al grinned. "do you really think she would say yes?" Ed chuckled. "no, i dont. i think she would scream it and tackle you." Al had to laugh at that, even though it was probably true.

Al looked at the cat, which gazed up at him with big yellow eyes. "Thanks Brother. . . I think I'll go to bed now." He got up and placed the kitten on the chair, walking into the room where Winry was sleeping. He had set out a sleeping bag on the floor, and he walked over and climbed into it. soon, he was fast asleep.

Ed also got up and went into the other bedroom. Wrath was asleep on a mat on the floor. Kit was in the bed reading. Ed climbed into the bed and looked at her, grinning so wide he thought his face would split open. Kit looked at him. "ok, what is it." she said instantly sensing his supressed exitement. Ed laughed softly and calmed down a bit. "Al is going to propose to Winry!" he excaimed softly.

Kit gasped. "that is fantastic! she said, closing her book. She looked at Wrath. "i think i may have come up with a name for him." she said. "but i will wait till tomorrow. goodnight Edward." she kissed him and then reached over and put the book down, shutting off the bedside lamp. soon both of them were fast asleep. and the kitten, despite himself, had nodded off as well.

Back at HQ, Roy had fallen asleep at his desk while trying to do some paperwork after leaving the party. He awoke with a start at someone banging at the door. ". . .. . .ngt. . . snert. . . hmn? yes? what is it?" he said, sitting up straight. The door flew open and Riza walked in. "Sir, i have a situation that requires your immediate attention." she said, handing Roy a piece of paper. Roy rubbed the sleep from his eyes and took it, reading it aloud.

"Colonel Roy Mustang, there is a bit of a situation going on in the city of Liore. there have been freak sandstorms recently that appear out of nowhere and are gone within ten minutes. when the sand clears, things have gone missing. no valuables, but food, water, a crossbow, arrows and some kitchenware have been taken. mostly food and water. we have pinpointed the culprit to be living in the desert about three miles out from Liore. We request that you send a few soldiers in to investigate. I am sure that it is probably nothing big, but we would feel safer if you did. your help is greatly appreciated. Thank you." it was signed GCS.

Roy looked at the note for a moment. Then sighed and looked at Riza. "what do you suggest we do, Sir?" she said. Roy suddenly brightened up a bit. "get Havoc, Fuery and one of the newer Alchemists in here please." Riza nodded and left, yawning. twenty minutes later a disheveled Fuery, an annoyed Havoc and a sleepy-looking young man walked in after being announced by Riza.

they saluted sloppily, then Havoc suddenly burst out; "What is the big idea, Sir? It's four in the morning! I mean no disrespect, but we had just gotten to sleep about a half hour ago! what could possibly be this important!?" Roy motioned for them to sit down, giving Havoc a look. He shut up and sat down, still slightly peeved.

Roy read them the letter and then looked at them. they were silent for five minutes, just staring, zombie-like at the floor. Roy opened his mouth to berate them when Fuery spoke up, sounding as though he had to struggle to put the words together to form a coherant sentance. "whadar yore odors- . . ." he shook his head. "What are your orders, Sir?"

Roy had to laugh. "If you can pay attention to the orders as i give them right now, you dont have to start the mission till 11am today." Fuery, Havok and Aaeon (the alchemist) seemed to liven up slightly. they looked at Roy. "I want you three to go and investigate this thing in Liore. I dont think it should be too much of a problem. it doesnt sound like a big deal, but i want you to check it out and see if you cant figure out what has been going on. If you find the culprit that has been stealing the food and weapons from the City, attempt to take him into custody. If he causes a problem for you, report back to me and I'll send in some more powerful alchemists to catch him and bring him in."

they nodded. Roy smiled. "you are dismissed. . . I will have someone wake you at 11." they stood and left, forgetting to salute. Roy looked at Riza and they both just burst out laughing.

Lust and Gluttony wandered the streets of Central, waiting for sunrise so they could corner Edward and talk with him. Lust walked along, deep in thought; suddenly she realised that Gluttony had disappeared. she sighed. "Gluttony!?" she called. "I swear i have to put a leash on him." she muttered to herself as she heard a crash in an alley nearby. Lust walked into the alley and saw Gluttony eating a trashcan lid. she rolled her eyes. "what are you doing?"

Gluttony looked up. "Lust, I'm hungry. Can i eat Fullmetal when you are done talking to him?" Lust went over and gently directed him out of the alley and toward the hotel where Ed was staying; the sky and begun to turn pink. "No, Gluttony. Sarai would be cross with you if you killed him. she has plans for him. now stop that obnoxious whining and sit quietly for a moment." he sat. Lust leaned against the metal fence and just watched the sun rise.

Greed was getting impatient. He had begun to pace and had started to wear a line in the carpet. Sarai sighed and got up from where she had been sitting next to Sloth, helping her renew her knowledge of how to use her power. she walked over to Greed, handed him a wallet containing about a thousand dollars. "here, go shopping or something. . . you are diving me insane; pacing around like a caged bear." Greed happily took the money and left the house moments later.

Sarai went back over to Sloth. "I wonder where Lust and Gluttony went off to. . " said Sloth quietly as Sarai sliced through her arm with a knife. her arm liquified and went back to normal. Sarai raised an eyebrow. "I am sure that they are perfectly fine." Sloth got up. "I need to do something. . . Greed is not the only one that has gotten a bit fidgety. . . I need to streach my new legs and get a grip on this new body. do you mind if i go for a walk?" Sarai smiled. "that sounds like a great idea. . .in fact, why dont i go with you." They left the house together.

Ed was awoken at ten by Wrath jumping on him and knocking the wind out of him. "I'm hungry!" the little boy cried as Ed tried to catch his breath. Ed smiled and looked at Kit, still sleeping. He sat up and picked up Wrath, placing him next to him on the bed. He got up and led Wrath out of the room, closing the door quietly. He took Wrath into the the kitchen and poured him some cereal. Winry walked in, yawning and rubbing sleep from her eyes. "morning Edward." she mumbled as she fumbled around for a bowl.

As Ed watched, Winry put the bowl down on the counter upsidown and began to pour milk on it. the milk splashed to the floor and doused Winry's feet. She immideately cursed, instantly awake. She ran and grabbed a towel to clean up the mess as Ed tried to stay upright while laughing his head off. As Winry ran back, she plowed into Al who had just come out of the bedroom and they both fell, sliding into the kitchen and effectively mopping up the milk with their clothing.

Ed fell over laughing and managed to hit Wrath's bowl of cereal. It flew up and dumped itself on Ed's head. Al and Winry; who until that moment had been glaring at Ed for laughing at them, burst out laughing as well. Kit, who had woken up because of all the noise, wandered in and caught Wrath just as he was about to fall off his chair, giggling.

Kit took one look at the three of them on the floor, covered in milk, and, in Ed's case, cereal, and just shook her head. "i dont want to know. . . .you three go get cleaned up and ill clean up the mess in here." Ed, Al and Winry got up and went into the two different bathrooms, still laughing.

After everything and everyone was cleaned up; Ed and Kit sat down with Wrath while Al and Winry played a game of poker. Kit smiled at Wrath; "i think we found a name for you. . .we cant just keep calling you Wrath. . . so how about the name Haku?" Wrath seemed to consider that for a moment, then nodded in approval. "I like that. . ." Ed smiled at Kit. "well, its settled then. . .Haku it is." Kit nodded.

Ed looked at his watch. "lets head over to HQ. I think Roy still wanted to talk to us. Al, i think you should come too. . and leave that cat here. Winry, would you mind staying behind and keeping an eye on Haku here?" Winry nodded. "I take it Haku is Wraths new name?" Ed nodded.

Ed, Al and Kit walked across the street to HQ at about 1:00. They entered the building and made their way to Roy's office. as they passed one of the offices, they were stopped by Major Armstrong, who pulled them into a little room and insisted upon Ed to tell one of the stories that he had missed last night because he had missed the party. Ed complied, but was slowed down because Armstrong kept on interrupting him. Al and Kit just stood there, trying not to laugh.

Roy was just finishing up some paperwork when the door to his office flew open and Havoc, Fuery and Aaeon ran in, gasping and utterly terrified out of their wits. Leiutenant Hawkeye follwed them a split second later. "guys, you cant just burst in on the Colonel like that. . . " she trailed off as Roy held up a hand. Roy looked at Havoc and Fuery. Aeon had collapsed onto the couch and appeared to have passed out. Roy signaled Riza to take Aaeon and leave, then he turned to Havoc and Fuery.

"Just what has gotten you two so terrified?" Roy said. They both tried to answer at once. Roy held up a hand and they shut up. He pointed at Fuery. "what happened?" "Sir, we scouted the desert just like you told us to; And we were just about to give up when we saw Him." Fuery stopped talking, like he was too scared to go on. Havoc took over. "He was walking along a sand dune and we approached him. We asked him a few questions and he didnt answer us, so Aaeon tried some alchemy. before we knew what was happening, we were surrounded by a whirlwind of sand!"

"We couldnt breath and couldnt see! Aaeon teleported us out of there . . if he hadnt been there, we would have been killed!" Fuery exclaimed. "It was like magic! the sand came out of nowhere!" Roy rolled his eyes. "ok, first of all, the sand did not come out of nowhere, you were in the damn desert, sand is EVERYWHERE!. second of all, there is no such thing as magic. And third of all, did you two see him do anything before the tornado of sand hit you?"

Havoc looked thoughtful for a moment. "i think he clapped." Roy smirked. "Havoc, Fuery. . .i would like to introduce you to alchemy." He snapped and suddenly the two officers' hair ignited. They scremed like ninnies and started hitting each other on the head.

Ed had heard the screaming and had run into Roy's office. he stopped dead when he saw Havoc and Fuery beating each other over the head trying to put out their flaming hair. "umm. . . . " he trailed off as Kit and Al showed up. "what happened?" said Al and Kit in unison.

Roy grinned at them. "oh nothing, i was just introducing Havoc and Fuery to alchemy." Roy went over to the desk and picked up the phone. "Hawkeye, i need you to send Blue Flame, Natural and Weather out to grab this guy. . . bring him back here and dont hurt him."

Gluttony and Lust had missed their chance to talk to Ed. "Lust, maybe we should just go up to their room and wait till they return. . ." Lust looked at Gluttony in shock. "that. . . .is a good idea. . but i dont think that it would work. i think Ed left that girl Winry and Wrath in there. plus Envy is in there and i have a feeling that if we were to invade, he would probably get pissed." Gluttony sighed. "Lust, im Hungry. . . can i eat that dog over there?" Lust shrugs and Gluttony goes after it.

Greed was bored, he had spent most of the money that Sarai had given him, and he was wandering around the market wondering what to blow the last of his money on and then he saw it. A red, teardrop shaped pendant. He immedately picked it up and bought it. He then took off and returned to Sarai's mansion.

He walked upstairs and saw to his dismay that Sloth and Sarai werent there. He shrugged, grabbed a piece fof paper and wrote a note;

Sarai; I saw this pendant and thought you should have it. I have no use for it, but you might. seeya around, Greed.

He put the pendant on top of the note and left the mansion.

Sloth walked along, listening to Sarai talk. She heard what Sarai was saying, but none of it really registered. She was thinking. Soon she came to a decision. she said to herself. If anyone deserves to kill them, it's me.

Envy was getting bored. He decided to have a little fun with Winry and began to follow her and Haku around like a little gray shadow, causing all kinds of mischif that a normal cat wouldnt be able to do. He allowed that childish game to distract him until Al and Ed came back and gave him more information.

Kit sighed as Roy completely ignored the fact that Havoc and Fuery's hair was still burning. She reached into her pocket and suddenly flicked a speck of water at them. Snapping suddenly, not unlike Roy does with his fire, the water speck multiplied and doused Havoc, Fuery and Roy with water. Roy glared at her. "was that really nessisary, Elemental?" Kit giggled. "oops. . . i guess i overdid it. . " she said, making it obvious with her tone that she had deliberately doused the Colonel with water.

Havoc and Fuery left, their hands on their heads, feeling what was left of their hair and making sure it wasn't still smouldering. On their way out they passed Apollo, Itaisu and Kurano; the Blue Flame Alchemist, the Natural Alchemist and the Weather Alchemist (not in that order). Ed was looking at Kit and snickering, and Al was on the floor in tears, looking like he was having a seisure.

Apollo, Itaisu and Kurano walked in and saluted, then noticed that the Colonel was sopping wet and started to snicker. Roy gave them all a Look; clearing his throat loudly. Al stopped laughing and got up, standing beside Ed and Kit. Roy ignored the three of them for a few moments and focused on the three Alchemists that he had called in.

"Apollo, I need you to lead on this assignment." Apollo nodded. "What is the assignment Sir?" she asked. Roy went over to his desk and grabbed the letter he had recieved two days before. He handed it to Apollo. Itaisu and Kurano crowded around her and read it with her. Roy waited till they had finished reading the note to continue. "I had sent Havoc, Fuery and Aaeon to investigate, but apparantly this rogue alchemist either didnt realize that they ment no harm, or conciously tried to harm them. nevertheless, your assignment is to take him into custody and bring him in. dont injure him if you can help it."

The three saluted. "dissmissed." said Roy. Apollo and Kurano each touched one of Itaisu's shoulders and they disappeared. Roy turned to Kit, Al and Ed. "Kit, why did you find it nessicary to soak me to the skin?" Kit snickered. "Sir, i just was trying to put out the fire that you started on Havoc and Fuery. you just had the misfortune of being in the way." Kit decided to apologise. . sort of. She rubbed her palms together and then leveled her right palm so it faced the celing. She blew gently in Roys' direction, creating a strong breeze that dried the Colonel in ten seconds, unfortunately it left his hair sticking straight up.

Ed managed to contain his amusement at the sight of Roy doing a very convincing impression of a rooster; but Al burst out laughing. Kit tried unsuccessfully to keep a straight face and dug around in her purse for a brush. She handed it to Roy, who took it gratefully and managed to make his hair lie flat on his head again, except for this one piece of hair near the back that stood straight up, making him look like some kind of wierd alien or radio transmitter.

Al left the room after about five minutes. He had managed to calm himself down somewhat, but he couldnt look at the Colonel without cracking up; and Roy had wanted to talk to Ed and Kit anyway. So, Al decided to go to the cafeteria to find something to eat.

Four hours later, Ed and Kit were relaxing in Roy's office, having a discussion about what had happened deep in the city that rested underneath Central. Al had gone for a walk. Roy was in the middle of a sentance when the door burst open. Apollo walked in, followed by Itaisu and Kurano. Escorted between them, bound securely at the hands was a relatively young man with short, semi-spiky reddish brown hair and confused yet cold green eyes. He wore a sand-colored cape-like coweled shirt that draped around him. he wore light brown pants, sand-colored leg-warmers and light brown sandals.

He had a scowl on his face as Itaisu forced him to sit down in the chair directly opposite Mustang's desk. The scowl was directed at Itaisu, rather than Mustang. He stared at the floor, obviously not going to try to run or anything. Roy looked at Itaisu and Kurano. "you two are dismissed. Apollo, Fullmetal and Elemental, you stay here. Apollo, make sure he doesnt try anything. Kit, you can help me with the questioning, and Ed, try not to piss him off. in fact, unless you have anything intelligent to say, keep quiet."

Kit got up and walked over to Him. Roy nodded at his desk, giving her permission to begin, pen in hand. Kit kneeled down so she could look him in the eye. "Hi, My name is Kitsune Elric, i am known as the Elemental Alchemist. I dont want this to be uncomfortable for you. We ment you no harm by bringing you here. We just needed to have a talk, ok?" Kit stood up and dragged a chair over so that it was across from him. He looked up, watching her.

She sat down again, smiling encouragingly. He seemed to relax slightly and nodded at her. "okay, first of all, If we were to untie your hands, would you attempt alchemy on us? Or would you feel more comfortable talking to us?" He looked her straight in the eye. "i wont try anything." he said quietly, his voice a pleasent sound, located on the spectrum somewhere between bass and tenor.

Kit looked at Roy. "he is telling the truth." Roy nodded and motioned for Apollo to untie him. once unbound; he flexed his wrists and rubbed them, trying to regain the feeling in them. Then he crossed his arms across his chest and he looked at Kit, seemingly waiting for her to continue. "Now for introductions." she said. "As i said, I am Kitsune Elric, the Elemental Alchemist. the one behind the desk is Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. The little one on the couch;" Ed let out a squeal of rage; "Is my husband Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, and the one standing just behind you to your left is Apollo Thompson, the Blue Flame Alchemist."

He looked at each of them as she pointed them out, nodding and in Ed's case, snickering slightly. "and I am Derek Atreides. I am an alchemist, but not one with a title. My element is Sand." he said in the same quiet tone. Kit nodded. "why were you stealing from Liore?" He looked ashamed. "I was raised in the desert by my alchemy tutor. When he died, i just did what i had to to survive. I only took what i needed."

Ed spoke up for the first time; "why didnt you try to go into the city and get a job or work for the things you needed?" Derek looked at Ed. "I tried, but they thought i was some kind of demon. . . ." he sighed. "so i really had no choice. I honestly didnt mean to cause trouble. but now i have nowhere to go, no home or family. I dont know what to do." Kit and Ed both looked at Roy; who had suddenly gotten this thougtful look on his face.

"Derek, would you like a job? If you join the state achemists here we can give you food, a place to sleep, work to do, and you would get paid a decent amount." Said Roy. Derek smiled. "i would be most grateful." Roy got up. "then it's settled. Derek, in order for you to become a state alchemist you have to pass a test. i decide on trial by combat because Edward here needs to renew his certification. so Derek, Edward, meet me on the parade ground in half an hour. you are dissmissed.

A half-hour later; almost the entire military had gathered on the parade grounds to watch the fight between Ed and the new, unknown alchemist, Derek. Ed stepped out and took his place in the arena across from Derek. Kit was chosen to announce while Roy, Al, Winry, Haku and that stupid cat watched from the newly built grandstand. Kit stepped up near Ed and Derek.

"Good Afternoon, Ladies And Gentlemen Of The Military! We Have A Special Treat For You Today! In The Red Corner, The Legendary Fullmetal Pipsqueak. . . Er. . I Mean. . . Fullmetal Alchemist; Edward Elric!" she paused as the roar became deafaning by people screaming with laughter. she looked at Ed; who was glaring at her; he managed not to screech, but he was clearly annoyed. Once the noise died down, Kit began to annouce again. "And In The Tan Corner, A Newcomer Hoping To Take A Place In The Military As The Alchemist Of The Sand, Lets Hear It For Derek Atreides!"

The applause was not as deafaning, but definetly there. Kit looked at Roy for the signal. he nodded. "Alchemists Get Set!" She shouted. Ed tensed and Derek just stood there, arms crossed in front of him casually. "Ready And Fight!"


End file.
